Cap drier



H. M. SMITH I March 15, 1955 CAP DRIER Filed Oct. 31, 1952 v INVENTOR. Hmaou: MlrH 9720M flmmoz Um AW'TO QMEYS CAP DRIER Harold M. Smith, Palestine, Tex.

Application October 31, 1952, Serial No. 318,024

1 Claim. (01. 223-25 This invention relates to a cap drier, and more particularly has reference to a drying frame adapted to support a cap such as a shop cap, after said cap has been washed and is to be dried.

Unless a cap of the type stated is properly supported upon a drying frame, it will not be dried in a proper shape. Additionally, it is desirable that a shop cap be dried in a suitable frame, to assure the prevention of shrinkage of the material of which the cap is formed.

It is the main object of the present invention to provide a generally improved drying frame for caps of the character referred to.

Another object of importance is to provide a drier as stated which can be manufactured at a low cost, thus to justify its commercial production.

Another object is to provide a cap drier which will make it unnecessary to iron a cap stretched thereover.

Another object of importance is to provide a drier which will be readily adjustable as to size, thus to permit the drier to be used as a frame for any one of a number of differently sized caps.

Yet another object is to provide a drier of the character referred to which can be positioned within a cap speedily and easily.

Yet another object is to provide a drier for shop caps which will have means embodied therein that will be adapted to grip the material of the cap, thus to prevent relative slippage between the drier and cap.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claim appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a drier formed in accordance with the present invention, a cap supported on said drier being illustrated partly in top plan and partly in horizontal section;

Figure 2 is a section taken diametrically through the drier and cap, substantially on line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the drier per se; an

Figure 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on line 44 of Figure 3.

The reference numeral has been applied generally to a conventionally formed shop cap. The cap 10, in glilis connection, is provided with a head piece 12 and a The drier constituting the present invention has been designated generally at 16, and is proportioned for insertion in the head piece, thus to assure the proper stretching and shaping of the head piece during the drying operation.

The drier 16 comprises a pair of adjustably connected.

frames, each of which will be described in turn. One frame has been designated by the reference numeral 18, and is integrally formed from resilient material such as plastic or spring metal. The frame 18 is formed to include a pair of parallel side portions 20 integrally connected at one end by a bight 22. At their other grids, the side portions 20 have closed longitudinal slots integrally formed upon the bight 22, and projecting beyond the free end of the frame 18, are gripping lugs U e P t fi I 2,704,176 Patented Mar. 15 1955 short, so that they will not represent any undesirable projections upon the drier.

A second frame has been designated by the reference numeral 30, and is integrally formed to include a pair of relatively elongated, parallel side portions 32. The side portions 32 are integrally connected, at one end, by a bight 34, the other ends of the side portions" 32 having longitudinal slots 36 registering with the slots 24 (Figure 4).

The slotted ends of the frames 18, 30 are overlapped as shown in Figure 3, and extending through the registeringmslots are connecting bolts 38 provided with wing nuts It will be seen that the overall length of the drier can be adjusted, by loosening of the wing nuts 40. After the wing nuts have been loosened, the drier frames can be adjusted toward or away from one another, as necessary, after which the wing nuts 40 are again tightened. This adjustment permits the drier to be used as a support for caps of different sizes.

As will be seen from Figures 3 and 4, the bolts 38 are not only passed through the slots 24, 36, butalso extend through openings formed in the opposite ends of a tie piece 42, said tie piece extending transversely between the overlapping ends of the drier frames.

' Formed in one side of each frame is a series of perforations 44, said perforations being roughened to provide means adapted to engage in the material of the head piece 12, when the drier is inserted in a cap 10.

In use of the drier, the drier is first adjusted to permit the same to be accommodated to the size of the particular cap to be positioned thereover. Thereafter, the drier is inserted in the head piece of the cap, in the manner shown in Figures 1 and 2, and the lugs 26, 28 are placed in engagement with the bight 34 in the manner shown in Figure 2.

The drier is thus formed into a circular member adapted to be resiliently engaged with the head piece 12, thus to hold said head piece in a stretched condition that will facilitate the drying thereof in a proper shape. The head piece will not slip relative to the drier, during the drying operation, due to the roughened means 44 provided upon the respective drier frames.

After the head piece has been fully dried, it is merely necessary that the lugs 26, 28 be disengaged from the bight 34, after which the drier can be readily removed from the shop cap. Ironing of the cap is unnecessary.

I It will be seen that a drier formed in accordance with the present invention can be readily manufactured at a comparatively low expense, the drier still having some desirable functional characteristics, despite the low cost of construction thereof. Among these characteristics is the ready adjustability of the drier, to accommodate the same to caps of difierent sizes. Another characteristic of importance resides in the capability of the drier for exerting a continuous yielding pressure against the head piece throughout the circumference of said head piece, this characteristic being obtained by reason of the resilient material of which the drier frames are formed.

Still another characteristic of importance is the means provided upon the drier for preventing relative slippage in which the free ends of the sides of the frames are 26, 28. A pair of lugs 26 is provided, said lugs being disposed at opposite sides of a single lug 28. The lugs 26 are inclined in one direction relative to the normal plane of the frame 18, the lug 28 being inclined in an opposite direction. Preferably, the lugs 26, 28 are quite arranged in overlapping relation to define an open area between the sides and the bight of each of the frames permitting a circulation of air through this open area so that the cap to be dried will attain that desired state of dryness more quickly and with greater efiiciency.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof desscribed above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described above, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends-any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A cap drier comprising a pair of resilient elongated U-shaped frames, each of said frames having spaced parallel sides connected together at one end by a bight to define an open area between said sides, said sides having their free ends remote from said bight in overlapping relation, means carried adjacent said free overlapping ends and operatively connected thereto to permit longitudinal adjustment of one of said frames with respect to the other of said frames, a plurality of lugs carried on the bight of one of said frames to releasably 4 secure the bight of said other frame therein to define a continuous band adapted to engage against the band of a cap to be dried thereon and permitting a circulation of air through the area defined between said sides of said frames.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,090,083 OHare et a1. Mar. 10, 1914 1,577,183 Dowiarz Mar. 16, 1926 1,639,331 Diamond Aug. 16, 1927 

